With Halloween just around the corner, I wanted to share our favorite healthier cut-out sugar cookie recipe. This is my go-to recipe for any holiday sugar cookies, Valentine’s, St. Patrick’s Day, Halloween, Christmas or any other celebration or event.

The recipe is healthier than the average sugar cookie because it is made with whole wheat flour and sweetened with pure maple syrup. The only refined sugar comes from the icing on these cookies. You may choose to even just serve them plain and omit icing them, or, if you feel like decorating them for fun or to share at a school party, go ahead and make this simple icing recipe, dividing the icing into different bowls and adding coloring of your choice.

Healthier Cut-Out Sugar Cookies

Makes approximately 32 cookies (depending on what size cookie cutters you use)

Ingredients

• 3 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 3/4 cup pure maple syrup
• 2/3 cup melted margarine or sunflower oil
• 1 flax egg, 2 tablespoons ground flax seed + 3 tablespoons warm water

Cookie Icing

Makes 1/2 cup

• 1 cup icing sugar
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened almond milk
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• food coloring of your choice, a few drops
• sprinkles (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder and sea salt in a medium mixing bowl.
3. In a small dish, whisk together the ground flax and warm water and set aside to thicken.
4. Add the flax egg, maple syrup and the oil or margarine to the dry ingredients in the mixing bowl and stir to form a dough.
5. Roll out the cookie dough onto a large, clean surface, about 1/4 inch thick.
6. Cut the dough with cookie cutters. (If the dough is too sticky, you may choose to place it into the refrigerator to chill a while, 10-15 minutes.)
7. Place the cookies 1/2 inch apart onto the baking sheet.
8. Bake for 8-10 minutes.
9. Repeat steps 5-8 until all of the cookie dough is used up.
10. Allow the cookies to cool completely before removing from the pan and icing.
11. Prepare the icing by whisking together the icing sugar, milk and cornstarch in a small mixing bowl. Divide the icing into small bowls to make different colors. Ice the cooled cookies using a butter knife and spreading about 1/2 teaspoon of icing across each cookie evenly. You may also choose to pipe icing on for pumpkin or skeleton faces, or add sprinkles. Allow the icing on the cookies to sit and harden.
12. Store the cookies in a container in the fridge.

Happy Halloween! 🙂